Jim Murray is the deputy leader of Dickstein Shapiro’s Insurance Coverage Group. A nationally-recognized trial lawyer with more than 25 years of courtroom experience, he has represented corporate policyholders on matters involving nearly every line of insurance. In 2011, Law360 named him one of only three national MVPs in Insurance Coverage.

Mr. Murray’s work in high-profile and exceptionally challenging cases has earned him consistent praise from clients and opposing counsel alike. In Chambers USA: America’s Leading Lawyers for Business, commentators have lauded Mr. Murray as a courtroom presence with “as much start-to-finish trial experience as any coverage lawyer out there” and have called him “astute” as well as “very polished and intellectually strong.” The 2010 edition of the guide noted how Mr. Murray’s cross-examinations in a recent case led directly to several “high value settlements” for the client. As one source explained to Chambers, Mr. Murray “understands the issues and where the bottom line is, and he makes the winning argument based on reason.”  The 2011 Benchmark Plaintiff edition ranked Mr. Murray nationally, noting that he is “well known in the insurance sector as a thoughtful and passionate advocate.”

In a June 2011 Law360 interview, meanwhile, a former adversary singled out Mr. Murray as a litigator he feared facing in court, telling the publication, “Jim is a savvy trial lawyer capable of quickly and effectively adjusting his presentation during trial.” Another former opposing counsel on behalf of London insurers recently told U.S. News “my view is that Jim Murray provides the highest level of advocacy on behalf of his clients. He is a formidable though professional and fair adversary.”

Mr. Murray served as lead counsel for the FDIC, as conservator for IndyMac Federal Bank, F.S.B., in a mortgage insurance lawsuit in federal court in California. The case ultimately settled, with the reinstatement of more than $100 million in mortgage insurance. In 2009, Mr. Murray was appointed by the federal bankruptcy court in Portland, Oregon as special insurance coverage counsel to the Oregon Province of Jesuits, as debtor, relating to liabilities for underlying allegations of clergy abuse. In 2011, the bankruptcy court approved settlements of almost $120 million between the debtor and its historical insurance companies. This case was one of three firm matters featured in The National Law Journal 2011 Plaintiffs’ Hot List. He also recently served as trial counsel in several complex coverage lawsuits relating to very substantial underlying asbestos liabilities, including arguing a motion to the Delaware Chancery Court that resulted in an unprecedented ruling applying an “all sums” allocation methodology under New York law. In 2010, he was co-trial counsel in the first bad faith case to go to a jury in New Jersey in ten years. Later in the year, he was trial counsel in a securities fraud case in Seattle that settled favorably in the third week of a jury trial, a few days before closing arguments.

Mr. Murray’s trial experience ranges from environmental contribution cases to bank fraud, trademark infringement, securities fraud, and professional liability.

Mr. Murray also chairs the firm’s Pro Bono Committee.

Bar Admissions

District of Columbia
New York
Washington
U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit
U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit
U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit
U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia
U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Washington
U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington
U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York
U.S. Supreme Court

Education

University of Montana, B.A., 1976
Oxford University, B.A., 1978
Oxford University, B.C.L, 1979
Harvard Law School, J.D., 1981